Disabled woman: ‘Condor treated us like cattle’
Saturday 20th August 2011, 2:30PM BST.
Wendy Howard on what could, after more than 50 years of regular visits, be her last Guernsey holiday. With her are husband William and son Robert. (Picture by Tom Tardif, 11711577)
A SEVERELY disabled woman who has been holidaying in Guernsey for 50 years says she was so badly treated by Condor that she might never return.
Wendy Howard, 63, who is blind and paraplegic, said she and her family were treated like ‘cattle’ by Condor staff when Wednesday’s Weymouth boat was cancelled.
The family – Wendy, her husband, William, and son Robert – said they were told to drive to Poole to catch another sailing but, after waiting in Poole for two hours, they were told by staff to go back to Weymouth.
Condor apologised and offered the family a refund for the outbound journey.
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im discusted how condor has treated this woman she is very disabled yet condor can only give a refund of one way this saddens me to read ,yet they charge so much for tickets this woman should be given a free holiday,she been coming here most of her life and this is how she is treated in return! im discusted how this poor person has been treated
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nothing that condor does surprises me anymore. useless isnt the word.
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Doesn’t sound that bad to be honest, they got a free trip to Guernsey, which probably covered the cost of fuel from Weymouth to Poole.
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This could present a perfect PR opportunity for Aurigny.
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Are you sure that Condor is not being run by the States ? You know,the bit about ‘the right hand not knowing the’. etc.
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Mr G go back to sleep.
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I agree a great PR opportunity for Aurigny!!!!!! come on Aurigny impress everyone!
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I am not saying that the Howards do not have a genuine grievance against Condor but in the interests of balanced reporting I feel those weighing in against the ferry company should also take into account this letter from another UK visitor that appeared in Saturday’s Guernsey Press.
“On a recent trip back to Guernsey to see my family, I made the apparently not unusual but still particularly silly mistake of turning up in Weymouth for a ferry sailing from Poole.
While my family will doubtless be ridiculing me for some time to come, the reaction from Condor staff couldn’t have been more different.
Travelling with two small children meant I was quite upset when I realised my mistake. The staff in the Condor office were sympathetic, friendly and helpful. They booked me on to the first sailing the following day, provided me with a list of local hotel details, kept my two- and four-year-olds happily entertained while I rang round and then gave me directions to our accommodation.
I have seen some adverse comment on Condor since being back in the island but I just wanted to let you know about some positive feedback. Their customer service, based on my experience, was excellent.
I was clearly in the wrong, but they went out of their way to put it right for me.”
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I recently travelled on the Condoe ferry (Weymouth). I was seated near the disabled lift and toilet. During the crossing a lady in a wheelchair with a carer and a member of staff went up the lift and the lady and carer went into the toilet. About 10 minutes later another member of staff turned up and knocked on the door asking if everything was ok as some emergency button or other had been pulled.
This member of staff was met with a tirade of abuse from either the woman or the carer. The member of staff was more controlled than I would have been.
Let’s just say there are a percentage of disabled people and carers who are as ignorant as some ordinary people.
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Condor Ferries has served the islands well over the years IMO. They have had a run of bad luck this year for sure. The whingers are cashing in on that fact and making things appear much worse than they actually are.
Things happen with a business of that nature and most tolerant people accept that.
Glad to see positive comments coming through. Every time I have used their service I have been very happy with all they do.
It would be nice to see the positive comments overtaking the whingers on this thread.
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Martino
Yes you are quite correct the press will jump all over any anti-Condor stories at the moment, whilst the good stories are relegated to the letters pages. However I will say that as with every company, there is are good staff and bad staff, and its the bad condor staff that sell the papers!!
I’ve recently got back from a trip to the UK with Condor, and it was a very smooth trip, both journeys on time (well within an hour of the timetable anyway, I dont class that as late) and I personally had a very pain free trip, all the staff I dealt with personally were pleasant, food was ok etc etc.
However I did notice first hand the “darker side” of Condors customer service in the car loading bay with an elderly passenger and an unbeleivably rude loading attendent who was shouting at him, I’m sure if this gent had complained, which in my view he had ever right to, this would be in the press also, so whilst my journey was good, there are still issues to rectify with the attitudes of some of the staff.
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I have been using Condor for the past seven years , a few times each year, to and from St Malo with my vehicle. I can honestly say that i have only praise for the way i have been treated by their staff who have always been helpful and courteous.
There will always be the odd incident where things do not go right, but Condor always appear to have reacted to those in a positive manner. When you consider the number of people travelling with them each year, i would be surprised if there were not occasions when things did not work out quite as expected.
I believe this particular incident was an exception to the rule. ( I have absolutly no connection with Condor)
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@ Observant
I couldn’t agree more!
I have always been completely content with the service offered by Condor ferries.
This is just a case of everyone jumping on the band wagon of negativity.
It’s a case of ‘Rabble Rabble’. Every one is simply following suit and the local medias clearly have nothing better to report than a group of grumpy looking people staring in to a camera moaning about what a terrible state our local ferry agent is in.
It really isn’t that bad…a bad year…that’s all!
Remember when we used to support Condor…we loved it when they first came in…now it’s treated like…like Aurigny! Ha ha Sorry I had to go there! Bit it’s true…
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Yet again Condor are in the firing line, however I think they desreve praise where praise is due, and whilst I agree that does not happen very often, however I must say that the way that my mother was assisted on her trip to Jersey for the Battle of Flowers was superb. The staff of Condor could not do enough for her. She recently broke her hip and after a call to Condor to see if she would be assisted, I was assured she would be and the care they showed was excellent, they could not do enough. So whilst there will always be those who complain, there are also those who compliment, well done Condor and thank you for helping my Mum to see the battle of Flowers, without you she would not have been able to go.
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Yes Dave, nobody is saying that Condor is perfect but I have to say I have not myself experienced their ‘darker side’ and that’s with using their services about half a dozen times a year on average.
I’m sure they do make mistakes and I’m sure there must be a few staff members whose customer service skills are not up to scratch but on the other side we really do have a ‘complainers’ culture’ now, backed up by a media outlet that squawks outrage from the front page as soon as any complainer is ready to ‘go public’ with his/her petty grievance.
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I have recently travelled with Condor, I was due to sail on the over night boat and have 2 young children also so i booked and paid for a cabin. On the day we were due to travel the overnight boat was delayed until after midnight. I politely called up the Condor office and asked if i could move to a earlier boat. The gentleman i spoke to was very helpful and very polite, he also refunded me for the Cabin which was fantastic and a very nice thing for them to do. Much appreciated. Sometimes things just happen…
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I think that in today`s modern climate everyone expects to have everything done for them no matter how inconvenient things are.
I appreciate the hardships that wheelchair users have to endure because I spent two years in one myself due to a motorcycle accident.
In that time I had to travel by air and ship to the mainland for treatment and there were times when I felt like I was a piece of baggage rather than a human being.
Having said that I came to realise that really that was all I was to the staff. I had to be manhandled on and off the transport so I was just a living suitcase to them.
I complained, of course, and after some diplomatic talk by the representatives of the company and some very minor compensations I realised that, when push comes to shove, I would try accepting that I was the problem that needed to be solved.
When I first met the staff who were going to move me around I greeted them with a cheery hello and a bit of banter about my problems (always look on the bright side of life). This broke the ice, as it were, and I found that the staff then relaxed and treated me better and indeed even went out of their way to help me and my partner through the journeys.
What I`m trying to say is, try treating your helper as a helping friend not a servant to your needs. They aren`t the cause of your disability and are there to assist you as best they can. They owe you nothing except a little respect and careful handling whilst loading you on and off the craft you are travelling on.
If you can`t return that respect for the sometimes tiresome people they have to handle then the answer is simple.
UNLESS ITS AN ESSENTIAL JOURNEY FOR TREATMENT, DON`T TRAVEL, at least until you can rearrange your attitude.
In this case a mistake was made and I`m sure that if the right representations had been made through the right channels, politely and with proof of any wrongdoing or bad behaviour by the staff, the company would have settled your complaint to your satisfaction.
There is no need to go bleating to the press whenever the slightest thing goes wrong, remember it isn`t only disabled people that have booking problems and rearranged travel plans.
Accept that you are a problem to handling staff, even if it isn`t your fault that you are as you are, try a little praise for their efforts rather than critisism and give them a big THANKYOU when they deliver you safely to your destination.
The next time you travel you will be remembered as that nice lady/man they helped and not “the grumpy old b*****d” that no matter what, or how, they did anything for you you wouldn`t be satisfied. You will find you will travel more comfortably and with less stress and you will enjoy your holidays more.
BE NICE, BELIEVE ME, IT WORKS.
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Great post Peter. You’ve said all that needs to be said!
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Pete
That was a great post and spot on.
I once escorted a friend to the UK that needed a wheel chair to the departure gate as i wasen`t allowed to push him myself a member of staff had to do it.
The attitude my friend had was disgusting towards the helper and i actually walked off in embarassment.
I am sure many of these complaints are caused by people diasbled or not by the attitude towards staff and thinking they should still be treated with smiles and courtesy? some of them are just disgruntled bullies that think they can have a free pop at staff.
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I am from Guernsey but have been living in Scotland with my wife and 3 children. I have family in Guernsey and visit most years. We have travelled on the clipper as well as the fast ferry for 25 years. We have never had a bad experience,everyone is so helpful and polite.
Getting hundreds and hundreds of vehicles on in a very short time is like watching a well orchestrated symphony at the Apollo. Poetry in motion. The deck crew do a fantastic job day in day out. Do you hear of any incidents. NO! I would like to say a special thank you to the staff in club class as they are the best at what they do. Sometimes the children and the wife feel sick if the journey is a little bumpy. They provide blankets,medicine something from the bar(strictly medicinal of course) and you don’t need to move from your seat.I will be traveling with Condor for as long as god give me life.
Quote, its the nature of the human beast. We love to complain to get something free. Viva Condor.
Chris Hamon from a little village in Wormit near St Andrews(home of the golf).
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I agree with Peter’s comments. Our experience on one trip, was when an overweight lady in a wheelchair accompanied by her equally overweight husband (who were treated like royalty)Taken to the upper deck via a lift, who then decided to complain to someone outside who was having a last cigarette as the boat was leaving,and was blocking her view! What view? after all they were only there for a few minutes.Later she left her seat while the boat was in motion and without her walking stick proceded unaded to the toilet,some of 9 or ten yards away. My question is,Why was she beeing treated like an invalid ?
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A.J.
For the convenient parking permit and the generous benefits of course.
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Condor are awful.
Friday 26th, checked in at 1640 on time for the 1740 to St Malo. The This is Guernsey travel website and the big display in the compound at the harbour said the Express was ‘on time’ Blatent lie by Condor, on check in the girl said it was an hour late.Why no text or call to say to check in later? The girl didn’t know.
The boat arrived and we left at 7pm, an hour and twenty minutes late. Divers sent down to video some part of the underneath of the vessel didn’t help. We were not travelling at top speed, why didn’t the captain go at maximum speed to try to catch up?
Outside of Jersey, we had to drift about for 3/4 hour or more as the Express was late and allegedly the ramps were busy. Very very slow loading and unloading.
TEN FIFTEEN, we eventually left Jersey.
We didn’t arrive in St Malo until TWELVE THIRTY next morning nearly 3 hours late. No compensation offered.
And while MOST car deck staff were very friendly some little oik supervising the unloading was most obnoxious.
Monopoly means we will have to use them again.
Nearly £400 for the privilege of being nearly three hours late.
Condor, if you read this what are you going to do about my trip from hell ?
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A.J.
although I am advocating that disabled people show respect for the staff who are trying to help them I must correct your observation about this particular event you witnessed.
My sister (NOT THIS LADY) is crippled with artheritus in both feet and hands and needs to travel in a wheelchair and with a lot of assistance from both her husband and any staff available. However she can walk a certain distance and at times when the toilet is needed manages to make the trip on her own because she doesn`t want the embarrassment of having someone assist her. Her sortis to the toilet are made at great pain but the embarrassment would be even more painful for her.
I still use a disabled parking disc because I can`t walk great distances but over short distances I walk as a normal walker does and I sometimes get dirty looks from people who see me exiting my car because I have no visible disability like missing or distorted limbs.
You see, not all disabilities are totally disabling.
The main point I was trying to make is that people, whether they be helper or the helped treat each other with respect for the help they are giving or recieving.
A SMILE IS OFTEN RETURNED WITH A SMILE.
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Well said again Peter. A smile for a smile.
And Chris, you talk about your trip from hell. I think a large part of your problem is due to the apocalyptic way you look back at things. It wasn’t really hell was it? It was very frustrating at the time I’m sure. Bloody annoying in fact. But hell no. People in Somalia are in hell. A lot of people in and Libya have been in hell and a lot of people in Syria are in hell right now.
We’ve all had days like that but we all get over them and move on. The fact that you still want Condor to do something about your ‘trip from hell’ shows that you haven’t moved on. Just try putting it behind you and writing it off as a bad experience that’s over now. Maybe with a smile, as Peter advises, if you can muster one.
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The fact that this lady was disabled really doesn’t have anything to do with what happened. Condor didn’t act this way BECAUSE she was disabled, it looks to have been an error which could have happened to any one of the passengers. A ferry was cancelled so that’s about what 300 passengers that had to be booked on to another sailing? Seems to have been a mix up, condor’s fault, condor have apologised and refunded the trip whilst also getting them back to Guernsey.
Some people just love jumping on the scape goat band wagon.
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